Slack-key guitar is a
fingerstyle genre of
guitar music that originated in
Hawaii. Its name refers to its characteristic
open tunings: the English term is a translation of the Hawaiian
ki hoalu, which means "loosen the [tuning] key". Most slack-key tunings can be achieved by starting with a guitar in standard tuning and detuning or "slacking" one or more of the strings until the six strings form a single chord, frequently G major.